Hello everyone and welcome back to Something Complicated. Here is a new release for all of you night owls out there (like me) and enjoy.
Disclaimer: Don't own Skip Beat! Stop asking.
Chapter 3: Loose Ends
Kanae learned quickly that her client is a bad traveler.
Apparently the flight Kenji had taken was originally both of their flights; it's just that he was more efficient in packing and went to the airport earlier than she did. He also made sure that he didn't leave his passport at home.
So, two more hours, a coffee, and ten large muffins later (screw Calories, she's been sitting here for five hours waiting for this woman. Besides, Kenji ravaged through eight out of those ten) Ms. Drania's flight finally arrived at the airport. Both individuals let out heavy sighs of relief as they trudged toward the terminal to greet the young woman.
Diana Dranias was very easy to find. Her entire form screamed spoiled rotten. From head to toe the twenty-two year old woman donned the most recent, and most expensive, designer clothes Kanae had ever seen. She couldn't help but calculate how much money each piece of clothing would better her financial situations.
She noticed Kenji go past her to greet his sister, only to have Diana drop her suitcases at his feet, clutch her stomach and run straight to the nearest restroom. Kenji only made a face before he sighed, took the largest carry-on, and gave Kanae the other. "Well on the bright side," he murmured, "she didn't give herself the chance to throw up on my shoes."
A few minutes later, the first words out of the woman's mouth were "holy crap my eyes!" It didn't take a genius to figure out she insulted her uniform. Kenji warned her to "be nice", to which Diana only gave him a pointed look before grabbing the bag he was carrying and walked off. Kenji and Kanae looked at each other before setting off, too tired to handle another scene.
Once they picked up her bags and set off (poor Sebastian thought all three of them fell in a hole), the silence inside the car was unbearable. Kanae could hear Kenji and Diana quietly argue in English, mostly her complaining as to why he didn't wait for her at Los Angeles. Kenji only scoffed and turned to look out the window, too tired to deal with this conversation.
Earlier in the ride, he tried to get Diana to cheer up when he asked Kanae for the picture, but it seemed to backfire when she gave one sarcastic comment after another. In the end he just stopped talking, staring out in space at the window, the reflection of the setting sun danced around his hazel orbs.
Kanae made sure to catch herself since Diana gave her frowns all throughout the ride. She duly noted that the two siblings sitting across from her did kind of look alike. The only thing she could really point out was that they had the same frown.
"We're here, Kotonami-san," Sebastian called out, the limo stopping moments later. With an internal sigh of relief, Kanae quickly stepped out of the vehicle; her two clients came sluggishly after.
Kanae made sure to ignore the onlookers as the trio walked into the five-star hotel. The receptionist gave Kanae a weird look before professionally checking in Diana. The only problem was…why wasn't Kenji doing the same?
Speaking of which…he never even told her why he was here in the first place.
She was ready to ask him when she noticed Diana give him a quick embrace, speaking to him in the softest tone she could muster. "Are you sure about this?" Diana asked, her sea green eyes pleading up at Kenji. He gave her a sad smile before he took a quick glance at Kanae.
"Don't worry Nee-san," he consoled Diana before placing his duffel bag over his shoulder, "it'll be a year before you know it." Giving her another hug he told her to call him if she needed anything before setting for the hotel's entrance. About halfway there, Kenji turned around towards Kanae and gave her a short bow.
"Please take good care of my sister for the next few weeks Kotonami-san," he said before walking out the door, his lone figure slowly blending in with the masses of bodies on the streets.
Kanae wasn't sure what exactly was going on, but she knew this was something much more intimate than what her supposed challenge entailed. But, it didn't hurt to wonder why he gave her such a sad look.
"He's here to tie up loose ends," Diana called out, catching Kanae's attention, "or so he says. Ken-chan has people in this country that are close to his heart, so it isn't my place to meddle." Kanae nodded as they quickly had Diana situated in her hotel room and prepared her to see President Takarada later that night.
Another hour later and Kanae witnessed both President Takarada and Diana greeting each other with warm words and loving hugs, as if the stress of the flight had flown away during her short hotel room stay. Escorting Diana to his office, Lory told Kanae she could go home for the night, which she couldn't help but be thankful for and raced off.
The moment Kanae left however, Lory gave Diana a look before quietly sitting in his large office chair. He was in a Persian mood as he fixed the bronze plated crown on his head, the bejeweled indigo silk surrounding his form made his skin glow as he waited for Diana to sit down.
"Father always told me you liked to dress up," she started, her green eyes scanning his attire, "forgive me if I made any faces."
"It's alright dear child, you aren't the first and you most certainly won't be the last," Lory chuckled before casting his tone to a more serious demeanor, "speaking of which, how is your father?"
"He's better. Mom gave me an update a little while ago," Diana replied happily, "thankfully it was just a small cold and nothing too serious."
"Good, that's good," Lory playfully pulled of the rings on his fingers before he looked up, "and how is your sister?" Diana stilled at the question as she clenched her hands together, her green eyes saddened.
"Athena nee-san is…tired. Ever since what happened with Rick she's worked herself to the ground," she willed away any tears that threatened to spill, "It's been a very long six years, for all of us. And I have a feeling things are going to get worse very quickly."
"How do you figure?" Lory's interest was piqued when Diana pulled something out of her briefcase, something he didn't even see her bring on her arrival. Carefully pulling out a stack of papers, she brought them over to him to which he quickly put on his glasses. With a raised eyebrow, he looked at Diana with confusion.
"I don't understand your reasoning," Lory inquired, wanting more information, "why are you handing me a copy of adoption papers?"
"My father never told you about Kenji, did he?" Lory's other eyebrow rose up as well at this new piece of evidence. He always assumed Alexander was Deon's only son, but apparently his friend achieved a stronger poker face since their last meeting.
"No he didn't." Lory slowly answered as he looked down at the papers.
"Over the past couple of months my father has been acting strangely since Ken-chan's twentieth birthday. It's become more apparent since he allowed him to come with me to Japan," Diana took a small breath to clear her throat, "I thought it was suspicious, so I decided to sneak into my father's office yesterday because I knew you of all people would be able to help me."
'So that's why she missed her flight,' Lory tucked in his thoughts as he questioned his friend's youngest daughter.
"Where is your brother now?" Diana shrugged, telling him the young man left the hotel before she could even get a hint. A frown was firmly set on Lory's face as he hummed in thought.
"Call Kenji tomorrow morning and have him come to LME to have a chat. Perhaps he can shed some light on the situation," Diana only nodded while Lory continued, "but before I pursue this any further, Diana…I need to know why you need my help." Diana steeled herself before she gave Lory a hard look.
"Father is planning something behind our backs, something big, and I want to know what. Also," she clenched her fists to her sides as she continued, "I want to know why he's forcing my baby brother to get married."
….
'It's around here I think…or was it past the convenience store?' Kenji huffed as he waltzed down the familiar neighborhood. After dropping his stuff off at his new apartment, he decided it a good idea to take a stroll and stretch his legs. Then after walking a bit he realized the streets looked familiar and wanted to go a little further.
Except…it's been so long since he's been in Japan he's been second-guessing his every turn. Perhaps he should have asked for directions from the couple a few blocks ago.
After he turned a corner down another random street, he looked up to see a cream colored-building, to which the smile on his face began to spread. Taking a long look at the house he used to play games, make jokes, and laugh out loud with his long-time friend, he knew he found it.
Although it looked a little…messier than he remembered.
Shaking off the thought, Kenji walked back to the supermarket from before, grabbed a few items, and went straight back to the house. The place itself still had that same homey atmosphere, despite knowing the structure had aged since his last visit. Lights streamed the front of the house, indicating people were home, which made the man slightly fix himself from nerves. Coming up to the house he noticed a metal gate never seen before that contained the nameplate 'Kotonami' written clearly on the metal. Spying the doorbell next to the nameplate, Kenji took in a shallow breath before he pressed the button, waiting for any type of response.
It didn't take too long before an older woman of average height opened the front door, her sleek black hair placed in a messy bun, her clothes wrinkled from wear. She looked out to ask Kenji what he needed this time of night when she suddenly let out a sharp gasp, her hands clasped over her mouth in shock. Before he could even say 'surprise', the woman ran towards him to give him a big hug, fat tears rolling down her face as she squeezed his torso. Kenji squeezed back as he buried his face on top of her head, the stray hairs tickling his nose.
"Let me look at you," the older woman said, tears still streaming down her reddened grey eyes. Loosening her grip on him, Kotonami Emiko looked up at the now grown man in front of her. She remembered him being so small and cute, with fuzzy blonde hair that flew all over the place and mischievous green eyes that glinted when he was up to no good. She realized with one look into his now darkened orbs and features that time had greatly changed him.
"Look at how handsome you've become," she placed a soft hand on his cheek, noticing his tanned skin turn light pink, "you must be batting girls away with a ten-foot pole." She giggled while Kenji rolled his eyes before giving her a big grin.
By this time, almost all of the Kotonami family piled out of the house to see what was going on. Excited whispers came from the older siblings while curious yet cautious stares came from the younger. Their father, Kotonami Haruto, stood tiredly at the back of the herd, giving his wife a few more moments with the tall stranger before he pushed his way through the crowd.
"Alright everyone," Haruto called out to the children, "head back inside. We wouldn't want anyone catching a cold before school tomorrow now do we?" A loud chorus of groans was his answer before bodies both big and small crammed their way back into the moderate-sized house. Once everyone went inside Haruto turned back to see his wife pulling Kenji to the house, the swishing of plastic rang true to his ears.
"I see our guest remembered to bring meat," Haruto smirked as he watched Kenji reveal a large bag of grocery items, "we'll have to make sure to cook it right away." Kenji nodded as he handed Emiko the groceries and come up to the gentleman, making a formal bow towards his past friend's father.
"I'm home." Kenji stated as he stood his full height to meet the man. Haruto only looked up at him and place a warm, rough hand on Kenji's shoulder, a small smile set on his weathered face.
"Welcome home."
A/N: Oh hey you made it, welcome. Hope you enjoyed this installment and look forward to the next chapter coming soon. Thanks a lot and see you next time.
